The Stats Don't Lie: Just how bad is Wales' record against the ABs?

The All Blacks have now won 24 consecutive test matches against Wales over the last 59 years. Photo / Getty Images

Opinion

Tracey Nelson crunches the numbers of the All Black-Welsh rivalry ahead of Sunday's clash in Cardiff.

The first test match between Wales and New Zealand took place in 1905, with Wales winning that game in Cardiff 3-0. There have been 28 tests in total since that first affair, and the All Blacks have won 25 with the last Welsh win coming way back in 1953 (13-8).

The All Blacks have won 24 consecutive test matches against Wales over the last 59 years, and that is the longest sequence of wins for any international team where both sides have had at least one victory over the other.

This weekend's test will be the 90th Wales have played at the Millennium Stadium. They have a 53 percent winning record against all nations on this ground, but have never beaten the All Blacks in the seven tests played there since 2002. The All Blacks average points spread per game against Wales at the Millennium Stadium is 39 for and 14 against.

Wales have scored 23 tries against the All Blacks, which is a long way short of the 108 tries the All Blacks have scored against them.

The All Blacks have managed not to concede a try against Wales on 14 occasions, the most recent time being June 2010, at Carisbrook. The last time the All Blacks kept Wales try-less in Cardiff was in 2009.

Fingers will be crossed that Dan Carter is fit to start this weekend. Carter has scored 162 points against Wales, a tally of five tries, 25 conversions and 29 penalties. All the more impressive given he has done that in just nine tests, and averages 18 points per game when playing Wales.

Carter made his test debut against Wales in 2003 and scored 20 points in that game, including a try. In 2005, in his third match against the Welsh, he scored 26 points which is an individual match record for an All Black against Wales.

John Kirwan holds the record for most tries against Wales in a single game, with four scored in Christchurch in 1988. Kirwan still holds the record as the All Black having scored the most tries against Wales, with eight.

Owen Franks has now played 43 test matches without scoring a try, while his fellow front-rowers Tony Woodcock and Andrew Hore have both scored eight. Hore is the only one of the three to have scored a try against Wales, and like Franks has played four tests against them.

Liam Messam will be playing his first test against Wales, and has been the All Blacks' most effective ball carrier in 2012 making an average of seven metres per carry. Messam has made 60 carries in the eight games he's appeared in this year, but Richie McCaw has made the most carries with a match average of nine each time - amounting to four metres each time.

It will be the 11th time Craig Joubert has refereed the All Blacks, and they have won eight of those prior 10 test matches. The All Blacks have lost once (Australia 2008) and most recently drawn one game (Australia last month) under Joubert. He has officiated in one previous test match between Wales and New Zealand in Cardiff, 2009 - the All Blacks won that game 19-12.

If Wales lose to the All Blacks it will be their sixth consecutive defeat, which would be their worst run since they lost 10 consecutive matches between November 2002 and August 2003. It could also potentially see Wales fall out of the top eight in the IRB rankings should Samoa get a draw or beat France in Paris this weekend.